Hey everyone! I hope you're ready for a new chapter delivered on time today!

X

Alex opened his eyes and found himself encased in darkness. Usually, his eyes could pierce through even the darkest of rooms, but he found no such luck here.

Here. Where am I? he thought. He looked down and could see his body still dressed in the clothes he wore to the bonfire, his pale hands, and his gangly arms. There was nothing beneath him, above him, behind him, or in front of him. He was simply floating. The feeling reminded him of being underwater. Rather than the icy waters of the lake near the orphanage, this felt… familiar, safe.

A gentle breeze rustled his clothes, and he turned his head to view the source. Standing, not floating, before him was a man unlike any he'd ever seen. He wore a suit that was somehow darker than the area surrounding them like it was spun from utter blackness. His onyx hair framed his white, upturned eyes. His skin was pale and thinly stretched over a face that reminded Alex of the cruel winter that threatened to ravage the orphanage each year. Something rustled behind the man, and Alex stared in awe as two magnificent wings came into focus.

They were tucked in neatly behind the man's back, but Alex could see layers upon layers of black feathers as long as his forearm. They shimmered under a light that didn't exist, setting them apart from the rest of the darkness.

Alex glanced to the man's hands to see if they ended in the same shadowy talons that claimed him barely two weeks ago. No, his hands were utterly human, save for the dark tendrils that slithered from beneath his sleeves. He opened his mouth to speak but found no air to produce words.

There is no time, a voice rang in Alex's head. It was cold and ancient and rang with a quiet power that sent tremors down the boy's spine. It wasn't much more pleasant than the voice of Ceuthonymus.

Time for what? Alex thought, unsure if the man could hear it.

The man gave no indication one way or the other. His expression remained impassive, yet there was a glint of life in his eyes. You have been given a test. If you fail, the Underworld will fall. Without death, life will cease to exist. Do not disappoint me, Alexander.

Before Alex could even start to form a response, the man stretched out is wings behind him and forcefully beat them. The wind they generated was so great that it sent Alex tumbling blindly through the sea of nothingness. He wanted so badly to scream but air refused to fill his lungs.

He had no idea how long he'd been falling through the void before he collided with something large. He flailed his arms and legs wildly, hoping to ward off whatever he made an impact with. That just sent him falling farther, down down down, until –

Thud.

His forearms slammed against something solid, followed by his knees. Despite the pain ringing through his bones, he continued to flail as whatever was attacking him held him by his chest and legs. He didn't dare open his eyes, afraid to see the daemon once again in its true form. He heard someone calling his name from the distance.

"Alex!" The voice grew louder as the person approached him.

"No!" Alex cried, not wanting whoever it was to get hurt by the monster holding his limbs hostage.

"Alex," they hissed. "Open your eyes. It's me. You're safe."

Alex couldn't recognize their voice over the dull roar of adrenaline in his ears. He cried out for them to go away, to save themselves.

An image popped into his head. He was standing in a vast, grassy field, with nothing as far as the eye could see. Above him, the sun shone brightly against a vibrant cerulean background. He felt its rays pierce his skin and warm him down to his bones. A gentle breeze ran its fingers through the tall grass that swayed against its touch. He could smell the fresh scent of the newly beginning summer; a mixture of grass pollinating the area around it and something he could only describe as warmth.

His racing heart began to slow as the image comforted him. He felt gentle hands removing the monster holding him down and turned to see Peter smiling back at him. Only, this Peter had no purple under his eyes, no deep-seated grief and darkness hiding beneath the almond depths. His skin glowed golden brown, having been kissed by the sun. His sandy hair was partially bleached, creating natural highlights that glimmered in the light.

Alex reached out to grab Peter's hand. Rather than the rough, calloused skin he remembered, it was soft and pliable. Like he never spent a single day wielding a weapon to protect himself from unimaginable danger.

Peter gently squeezed his hand and said, "you can open your eyes now."

Alex frowned. His eyes were open, he was staring right at Peter. But one second, he blinked and the next – the image disappeared.

He found himself laying on the floor of his cabin. He blinked a few more times, willing the other image to return, but to no avail. Remembering the monster, he quickly got to his feet and scanned the room for any signs of danger.

His eyes landed on Peter, his Peter, sitting on the floor with Alex's bedsheet in his hands. What was Peter doing in his cabin? Why was he holding…

The thought trailed off to nothingness as realization dawned. There was never a monster. They were never in danger.

"How did you do that?" Alex asked. They both knew what he meant.

"Hallucikinesis. I can put illusions in other people's minds. Usually, they have to be asleep, but your mind was wide open and easy enough for me to slip into. I've never seen yours so vulnerable." Peter rose to his feet and tossed the sheet onto the bed.

Alex felt a dull throb forming in his head. He reached up to rub his temple and found his fingers as cold as ice. The image of his father burned clearly at the front of his mind. "Did you happen to see what I was dreaming about before then?" A test, to see if it was real.

Peter shook his head. Alex felt a pang of disappointment streak through his chest.

"I came over because I couldn't feel you anymore. I thought- I thought that you'd already left." Alex had never heard Peter stumble over his words before. His voice was raw and vulnerable.

Alex then noticed the other boy's disheveled appearance, the red puffy skin underneath his eyes. How long had he waited to see if Alex indeed abandoned him? The thought of Peter crying, alone with the awful thoughts in his head, broke Alex's heart.

"I was with my dad," he explained. "I don't know where I was. All I could see was darkness. I couldn't even breathe, but I didn't need to." He took Peter's hand in his own and gave it a gentle squeeze. "I would never leave you behind."

Peter returned his gaze with a small smile. "Then who would save you from the awful sheet monster?"

Alex snorted. "I almost had it."

Peter shook his head. The humor drained from his face, replaced by exhaustion. Alex glanced at the purple clock hanging on his wall, a gift from Sabrina after his lesson with Edmund. The time read 3:22am.

"Do you want to sleep here for the rest of the night?" Alex asked. He still wasn't used to sleeping alone. Only being accompanied by nightmares through the night had worn down his mental strength.

"You don't have a second bed," Peter said quietly.

"Mine's big enough," Alex said even quieter. He felt his heart soar when Peter nodded without hesitation.

That night, Alex got the best sleep he'd ever had. The last he would have for a long, long time.

X

The clock Sabrina had so graciously given Alex had begun emanating a high-pitched frequency starting at six that morning and refused to shut up until he blasted it with darkness. It was a rude enough wake-up call that Peter threatened to strangle Sabrina the next time they saw her.

Thankfully, whether for Alex's sake or Sabrina's sake, Peter seemed to forget that threat while they gathered up supplies and changed into their gear. Neither of them spoke of the previous night, even though they'd simply lain next to each other and slept. That didn't stop Alex from looking at the other boy's toned arms and torso that contrasted with his gaunt frame. He hadn't realized before just how muscular Peter was. The thought made him feel self-conscious over his own lanky body, so he'd turned his attention elsewhere.

Sabrina eyed the two boys as they wearily approached her. She stood outside of her cabin with a large satchel strung over her shoulders. She wore her training gear like she'd instructed the boys to do. Whereas theirs were black and accented with silver, Sabrina's had purple flourishes stitched into the parts of the fabric that hugged her curves. Hers also had long sleeves that ran down the length of her arms and ended in glittering gold cuffs. Her pale blonde hair was braided down her back beneath her shield and Egeking.

"Long night?" She asked in reference to their tired faces. Peter sneered at her, but Alex just let it go.

"What's the plan?" Alex asked shortly.

"We're meeting in the palace. Edmund wants to speak to us before we go, and Hades has finally decided he'd like to meet the first "chosen one" from his camp." She provided air quotations to prove how much that phrase vexed her. "Carter has decided that she won't be joining us for our farewell."

"What a shame," mumbled Peter.

Sabrina reached into her satchel and pulled out a flashlight and a pair of blue glasses. She handed the flashlight to Alex and the glasses to Peter. The former looked at them and said, "what are these?"

"Those are your weapons. I would recommend using them before your abilities. Otherwise, you're going to run out of energy really fast." She provided no other explanation before stalking past them in the direction of Hades' palace.

Peter didn't seem keen on explaining either. He pocketed the object given to him and followed Sabrina. Alex stared incredulously at the bright yellow flashlight in his hands. He didn't have time to ponder it for long before Sabrina called after him to hurry up. He threw it in his own bag and raced after her.

Even though the faux sun had yet to appear, campers were stepping out of their cabins to watch the group go by. A few stared in awe, but most wore faces of pure hatred and jealousy.

"Why the Hades does that little twerp get to go on a quest? I've been here for three years and have never seen anyone get chosen," a dark-haired girl hissed.

"He's only ever trained once. I bet that he dies before the end of today," a boy with blue hair smirked.

"Weren't they the ones who almost broke the camp border? Shouldn't they be punished for that? Let someone else go instead!" shouted a young girl. She looked no older than ten, but she bore the familiar bright hair of the Phobos siblings.

Alex just ignored them. Feeding into their hate would only make it worse, a lesson he'd learned the hard way from his time at the orphanage. Once they reached the steps of the palace, a glimpse of silver hair made the group stop dead in their tracks.

Carter appeared on the steps in front of them. Alex was sure she hadn't been there as they walked up.

"Where do you three think you're going?" She glared at them. Her eyes, pale as the icy venom that laced her words, narrowed in contempt.

"We have a meeting to get to with the camp leader," Sabrina said evenly.

"As his second-in-command, I have the authority to decide what meetings are worth his time. And seeing as you three will not be leaving this camp now, or really ever, I suggest you go back to your cabins." Her lip curled in disgust as she held Sabrina's gaze.

Do not disappoint me, Alexander. The words rang in his mind as clearly as they had been when they were first spoken. His father, the primordial god of darkness, had told him that the Underworld would fall if he failed. He looked at the girl, barely older than each of them, blocking their path. She was savage and strong, but neither of those would keep the camp safe if the camp no longer existed.

He walked up the steps until he was standing one below her. He held her stare with his own. "We are going on this quest and there is nothing you can do to stop it. You may have the power to punish us, but you've forgotten one thing."

Carter arched a slim eyebrow.

Alex ascended the last step and stood beside her. He looked over at her and was surprised that her shoulders were barely taller than his own.

"I'm the son of a primordial," he whispered. Tendrils of darkness, the consistency of smoke, crawled over the girl's cheek. He watched a shudder run through her body before she flicked the tendrils away in disgust.

"Alexander, we're waiting," Edmund said from the palace doors. He gave no inclination on if he'd just witnessed the scene unfold.

Without so much as a glance at Carter, Alex moved to join Edmund inside.

X

"Remind me again, son, what the prophecy said," Hades said from atop his throne. It looked the same way it had the previous day and revolted Alex just as much standing up close.

Edmund did not sigh, but his voice was tight as he recited word-for-word what Psyche had spoken.

"You shall travel to the darkest veil

To repair a tear that cannot fail

Love will be lost, and love will be gained

A child of darkness will be framed

You shall return to a victory won

That will signify the ending sun."

The last word echoed through the room. Nobody dared speak or even breathe as Hades contemplated the meaning behind the cryptic words. He pressed his bony fingertips together in front of his chest. Alex caught a glimpse of emerald, ruby, and sapphire jewels bedecking his bone-colored hands.

"The boy has been having strange dreams, yes?" He asked without shifting his gaze from Edmund. "And he came across someone lucid in my Asphodel Fields?"

Edmund nodded curtly.

"A tear in the darkest veil. The darkest place I know of is Erebus. As I'm sure you're all aware," he swept his hand over the group. "Souls must first pass through Erebus before entering the Underworld. It allows us to differentiate between the dead and alive. If there is a hole in that veil allowing souls to slip through that I have not heard about... Perhaps there is time to mend this before it becomes a bigger problem than a twelve-year-old can face. Even one that is the child of a primordial."

Hades sighed deeply and sat back in his throne. "As for the rest of it, you'll have to figure that out for yourselves."

Alex stepped forward and cringed as his shoe collided with a skull. "Do you know where the tear is?"

Edmund gave Alex a sharp look for speaking out of turn, but Hades merely shrugged. "No. If I did, then there wouldn't be a hole to begin with."

Alex felt embarrassment heating his cheeks. He stepped back in line with Peter and Sabrina.

"I wish you all luck on your journey." Hades flicked his fingers dismissively. Edmund turned around and led the group out of the room.

"Why hasn't Erebus just fixed the hole himself?" Sabrina asked Edmund once Hades was out of earshot.

"I don't know," the man responded. Alex could have sworn he caught a glimpse of despair in the man's eyes before they steeled over.

Edmund led them out of the palace, through Persephone's Garden, and out the bronze gates. The view was no less terrifying this time than it had been when Alex first arrived.

"I can shadow travel you all to the bottom," the man said. "But that is as far as I go."

They all agreed, and Alex once again found himself tumbling through air that threatened to rip the skin right off his face. Thankfully, he didn't vomit when they landed. Peter, on the other hand, turned a pale shade of green.

"Good luck." Edmund placed a hand on Alex's shoulder. "You have strength inside of you, Alexander. All you need to do is learn how to tap into it."

He and Sabrina shared a brief glance before Edmund disappeared back into the shadows.

Alex looked around at their surroundings. They were beneath the cliff that Hades' Palace and Camp DuMort sat on. Now that they were officially out of the camp, the only light to guide their way was from the fire that burned through the cracks in the obsidian ground.

"Where do we go first?" Alex asked.

"We need to figure out if that guy remembers where he came out of," said Sabrina.

"It's too late for him. The fields have probably already claimed his mind." Peter reminded her.

"Then what do you suggest?" She snapped back, her cobalt eyes blazing in the darkness.

"Why don't we go talk to the god of boundaries? Maybe he has an idea." Alex suggested.

Peter and Sabrina shared a surprised look, but neither of them argued.

"To Acheron we go," the girl said rather brightly.